Domaine Tempier

Domaine Tempier

The annual visit to taste at this extraordinary estate is always one of the highlights of my year, for this leading wine of the Bandol appellation has long held a special place in my cellar and my affections. I have been a regular visitor since 1975 and have been privileged to taste every vintage bottled at the domaine since the first one in 1951. The reputation of Bandol wine, indeed its very survival at all, owes much to the determination of the late, great Lucien Peyraud who so properly recognised the virtues of this exceptional ‘terroir’ and knew that the awkward Mourvedre grape was the key to unlocking the true potential of its steep slopes and terraces, set back a few kilometres from the Mediterranean in one of the sunniest corners of France. The wine would not in my view be as fine without useful counterbalancing of the Grenache, whose oxidative propensity makes a desirable marriage with the reductive character of the Mourvedre. Syrah here is negligible, Cinsault much more important, and old Carignan vines too. The fine rosé is the best I know and has an extraordinary capacity for aging well. On one visit, which coincided by chance with that of Jancis Robinson MW, this was proved yet again by a vertical tasting of six vintages of the rosé going back as far as the intriguing and excellent 1988 and 1981. The 1982 red wine from La Tourtine was not tasting a day too old either! I am happy to have a very good back catalogue of old vintages, since the rewards for patience are considerable as the wines have the longevity to rival and even surpass those of Bordeaux in many vintages. The quality of the regular ‘Cuvée Classique’ has never been better than it is today under the eye of the experienced Daniel Ravier who knows this estate so well, while the contrasting characters of the two principal ‘terroirs’of La Migoua and La Tourtine never cease to intrigue. These are wines of great character and originality, rarely reaching full maturity before the end of their third decade and yet thoroughly enjoyable in their exuberant youth. They deserve a place on any shortlist of the great wines of France. We salute Lulu, Lucien’s ever vivacious, hospitable and remarkable widow, on her recent hundredth birthday. Tempier is indeed a true “vin d’emotion” for us and many others.